2013 - A Year of Gratitude

As I get older, I am more mindful of the little things in life that truly matters to me. One of the most essential to "living life to the fullest", is choosing (as much as I can) to stay positive and think of the happy moments instead of focusing on the negative ones. I've always believed that happy thoughts generate happy cells in one's body. Sicknesses are somehow kept at bay and happy vibes infects people around you too. Happiness is truly not something you can place a price tag on.

Looking back at 2013, there are many little things I am grateful for that made my year a memorable one.

• Watching my 13 year old son gain some independence after starting secondary school. I can now run my necessary errands and leave him to come home on his own and settle his own meals. It is a little load off my mind.
• My husband and I celebrated 16 years of marriage. Though we've never celebrated it in any fanciful or romantic way, I am happier that he takes the time to plan and take the family for a few short getaways this year. Vacation time with the family often means a lot more to me than one candle light dinner.
• Reminding myself why I love what I do - keeping my lifestyle jewelries creations affordable. It's really not about the money, money, money! It's the passion that keeps what I do, alive.
• I had my first makeover! Well only on the face but there was much to learn from the session hosted by Florinda. It was a fantastic time spent with women I know!
• I never thought there will be a day that I will gather ingredients and prepare an oreo mud pie! If not for my little girl's request, I don't think I would. I hope she realizes that the little things I do for her is out of love.
• Now, if you know me, I am TOTALLY NOT a night owl. But for a late night date with my hubby, I did it. We went for an extraordinary date to Senoko Fishery Port!
• The kids and I also made out debut on TV for a programme interview on why I blog. Even though the airtime was very short, it was the experience that mattered.

As we usher in 2014 in a few hours, I pray for peace, health and happiness to continue to reign within the family. And a special wish to all my readers for the same blessings for your families too.

Cheers to 2014!

 

  Till the next post, have a blessed week!

Why I Think The Philips Airfryer Is A Great Kitchen Helper

It has been a whirlwind few weeks, cooking alongside with my sleek and sexy new partner in the kitchen - the Philips Avance XL Airfryer. I must say, I am very impressed with it's brilliant rapid-air technology that makes air frying possible - which is great for the health conscious and those who yearn to have their fried food intake plus more home cooking done in quicker time.

By now I am able to confidently share with you why I think the Philips Avance XL Airfryer is probably one of the greatest invention that has been helping me in my kitchen.

NO MORE messing up my stove or kitchen to deep fry + no greasy smell

It certainly cuts down unnecessary time spent cleaning the kitchen after preparing each meal. 

Faster cooking with healthier results, every time! 

Even though some recipes call for a little oil to be brushed on the food, the amount is comparatively much lower than what you would probably use if it's conventional cooking. A little difference goes a long way!

Easy clean and maintenance 

I choose to place foil paper on the wire basket before I cook for minimal clean up.

I save on oil usage - which translates to saving money

this is the "biggest-test"(if there's such a word) bonus!

Perfect for quick fix snacks and small portion preparations

Convenient frozen food like fries, nuggets, onion rings etc. would be ready in less than 12 minutes without much fuss, even the young ones can do it themselves!

Some of the substantial dishes I've prepared using the Philips Airfryer. Note the versatility of this machine! From clockwise : sweet sour pork, grilled ribs,chicken chops, baked cinnamon dough bites and "re-frying" fish cakes. You can find some of the recipes here

The latest recipe I tried with the Philips Airfryer were these cinnamon dough bites. Now, these were my first try with dough and I was pretty impressed how quickly it cooked. As you can see from the photo, it was evenly browned on the crust, with a fluffy texture on the inside. Pretty to look at and great for a simple mid-afternoon snack!

RECIPE FOR CINNAMON DOUGH BITES 

yields about a dozen golf ball size bites

Total time spent :  45 minutes

1/2 cup milk, warmed

200grams plain flour

1 tsp instant yeast

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 cup (11g) caster sugar

Ready made cinnamon sugar powder

Method :

- Combine the ingredients to form a sticky dough.

- Leave the dough to rise in a bowl to double it's size. Cover the bowl with cling wrap. (Approximately 1/2 hour or more)

 - Knead dough on floured surface board, cut to size and shaped.

- Place the dough balls on foil paper, that is sized to fit the airfryer basket and let it rest for a while.

- Pre-heat the airfryer at 180 degrees celcius.

- Then put the foil paper with the dough balls, into the basket and bake for 12-15 minutes, till golden brown

- To complete the dough bites, pour some cinnamon sugar powder on a plate, glaze the outside of the dough bites with a little butter and roll them in the powder so that it sticks.

- Serve warm for best taste.

Seeing how the Philips Airfryer has helped me with my cooking, there is no doubt how it can help you if you have a small household with a busy work schedule yet want to whip up a fuss free and healthy home-cooked meal for your family. With the convenience of the preset cooking function, time and digital temperature control, you can step out of your kitchen to attend to other things while the trusty machine cooks for you. Seriously, what's there not to like?

**************************************************************************************

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Sights and Tastes in Penang

Photo taken with my iphone 4S, from the room balcony. As we watched how the ship was skillfully docked.

We just got back from a little vacation in a cruise ship with friends and docked off at our first stop in Penang. The time spent in Penang was barely 5 hours but it didn't stop us from going out to explore George Town! Well, in fact, we were just being typical Singaporean foodies and yearned to chomp down some good local food!

An interesting nostalgic sight for me to capture on my camera.

We were lucky that one of our travel companions, originates from Penang so he knew his way around. It was about an hours' walk from the pier (with a short detour to get some tau sah piah and a stop to poke our noses into a local chocolate museum) when we arrived at this old school coffee shop located at Libuh Keng Kwee lane, that was famous for their char kway teow. We were so darn lucky that we managed to order the last 6 plates for the day, before they turned everyone else away! And it was only 5pm.

The infamous char kway teow lady boss in action. I was told she is a fierce one!

What we came here for... mmmm I can still imagine the taste lingering in my mouth! Extremely worth the walk!

 Within the coffeeshop,  there was also the mouth-watering Assam Laksa.

Oh man! Look at that "hae gor" (fermented shrimp sauce). Still drooling.

And also the lor bak! 

Last but not least, we also sampled the chendol, sold at a roadside stall - which was apparently as famous. Very simple ingredients of the green jelly and red bean but thirst quenching and yummy nonetheless.

Satisfied Singaporeans.

Right after the meal, we headed back to the ship. Yep. We were that hardcore for the local food!

Captured this image along the way back.

And learned that Jimmy Choo originates from Penang as well!

Albeit the short hours in Penang, we felt our food hunting mission was completed. 

I shall be sharing what we did in Phuket, in another post. Stay tuned to find out what you can achieve in Phuket with the older children in one day. Guaranteed to make them really happy.

  Till the next post, have a blessed week!